ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- In a developing legal saga in Seychelles, Patrick Herminie, the prominent leader of the United Seychelles party and a former parliament speaker, was charged with witchcraft on Monday.
This charge comes as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged supernatural activities.
Herminie, who has announced his intention to run in the 2025 presidential election, vehemently rejects these accusations, labeling them as politically motivated.
He was arrested at his party’s headquarters on Friday, where his office underwent a thorough search before his eventual release.
On Monday, Herminie, along with seven others, faced formal charges at the Seychelles magistrates’ court in connection with a probe into “witchcraft” and “unnatural and superstitious” practices.
“This is a political spectacle orchestrated by President Wavel Ramkalawan to eliminate those he sees as potential threats in the 2025 elections,” Herminie stated to the Seychelles News Agency following his Friday arrest.
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Prosecutors presented evidence, including WhatsApp message exchanges linking Herminie to a Tanzanian individual detained in September. The Tanzanian was allegedly found in possession of items associated with witchcraft, such as black wooden artifacts, small bottles containing a brownish liquid, and documents featuring language and symbols described as satanic.
This case is linked to an August discovery of exhumed bodies, an elderly woman and a young man, in a cemetery on Mahe, the main island of Seychelles. Prosecutors further noted similarities between symbols found on the documents in the Tanzanian’s possession and those found at vandalized locations in Seychelles, including Catholic churches.
Herminie and the other Seychellois defendants were granted bail of 30,000 Seychelles rupees (approximately $2,200), while the Tanzanian suspect was ordered to remain in police custody.
The next hearing in this complex case is scheduled for 3 November, adding to the ongoing political tensions in Seychelles.